Local

A Springfield business owner is accusing Mayor Mike Houston of withholding a liquor license for not meeting certain demands.

Michael Stoker, manager of Scandals — which opened a new restaurant on 11th street called Mama’s Kitchen — says the mayor handed the bar owner Aaron Hurley a letter with a list of conditions, which the mayor said would result in a liquor license if signed.

“We applied for a Class D license under Chapter 90 of the Springfield code,” Stoker told WTAX’s Ray Lytle Show. “[Those are] our terms. [Those are] terms the city set out. The mayor came up with these new terms.”

The mayor, in the letter, told Hurley and Stoker they musn’t ever apply for a 3:00 license — which they never asked for. Hurley signed the letter under protest, and the mayor wouldn’t award the license — even though they’ve already paid the fees and it received council approval.

Stoker says he and Hurley have a meeting with the mayor — without attorneys — at 10:00 Tuesday morning.